IMPEACH THE PRESIDENT
Operation: Ceasefire draws thousands to the Mall

The day was overcast but the vibe was anything but dreary as thousands of people from the DC area and all over the country came for the anti-war march and concert on the mall. The line-up was repping primarily underground acts, as assembled by local svengalis Thievery Corporation, who also performed with a full ensemble later in the evening. The entire event was hosted by ex-Dead Kennedy's frontman(and my high school hero) Jello Biafra. His schtick was actually pretty thoughtful and entertaining, not solely embarrassing as I had feared.

The crowd was very diverse, age-wise, and the old and young mingled freely. The music line-up could have benefitted from more populist Hip Hop or R&B acts, but thematically it seemed to be all about the margins and the underground. A Go Go band like Rare Essence, Junkyard or Chuck Brown himself would have really added to a scene like this.

My gang of friends and I arrived later in the afternoon, just as Al Sharpton took to the stage. Just in time to catch The BellRays set. They rocked the mall to it's foundations and were then joined by MC5 guitarist Brother Wayne Kramer. Wayne joined the full BellRay line-up for a fantastic rendition of "Human Being Lawnmower", the 5's anti-Vietnam opus and then was backed by the band for some of his solo songs, the best being a spoken word aggro-noise feature called "Bomb Day".

Peace activist(and punching-bag-for-right-wing-radio-hosts) Cindy Sheehan gave a short presentation, and was then presented with a Star Quilt by representatives of the Lakota Nation. The short ceremony, according to the Lakota elders, was a tribute to Sheehan's courage at having taken the position she has taken despite severe pressure and opposition. having heard her on TV and radio previously, I always wish Sheehan was a better public speaker(I think she would take less heat if she didn't sound quite so shaky and strained). But seeing her up close and personal made me realize that she is just an average person who has assumed a pretty huge yoke of responsibility and expectations, and given that, she carries it pretty well.

Steve Earle started out with a rousing number called "F--- the FCC" complete with an uncensored spelling lesson, but faded a bit into some pretty slow numbers before closing with his classic "Jerusalem".

Washington Wizard Etan Thomas gave the most moving presentation that I saw, a poetic sermon of sorts describing a tour he would take the administration on through the 'hood in DC. Thomas is a tremendous poet, and a real throwback to the days when pro athletes used their platform to address social issues and not just stack their endorsement cash. I had first seen Thomas during a DC HS poetry slam hosted by Nikki Giovanni a few years ago, and was impressed with his committment to the arts and DC kids, but his performance today just enhanced and solidified that perception. The real deal.

The Coup were the last group we stayed for in their entirety, and they were pretty hot. I have only had limited exposure to their politically-savvy rap, but I have always dug their single "5,000,000 ways to Kill a CEO" from a few years back, so I was jazzed that they played that track early in the set. They energized the crowd and got things flowing. A surprisingly energetic performance from these Oakland mainstays who have been bringing it since the days of "Kill My Landlord" and "Genocide and Juice", the Coup really worked the DC crowd.

Although we left after the Coup, we did come back later and caught most of Thievery Corp's reggae-soaked set. Having never seen them live, I was expecting something altogether more sedate than what was delivered. Pretty impressive.

Once they finished up, us old men ambled off into the DC night, illuminated by the Washington Monument, content to leave the kids to their generation's punk rock heroes.

Quote of the Day
"You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you mad."
-Aldous Huxley